SCRIPTURE: REVELATION 20
BIBLE VERSES:
“ And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.” (Revelation 20:1-3)
“Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.” (Revelation 20:6)
“And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” (Revelation 20:10)
“ And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.” (Revelation 20:12)
“The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:13-15)
THE THOUSAND YEARS (vs. 1-6)
John saw an angel coming down from heaven. He had the key to Abyss with his hands holding a chain. He seized the dragon called the ancient serpent, devil or Satan and bound him for a thousand years. He was thrown into the Abyss being locked and sealed for a thousand years. After that, he will be set free for a short time.
John also saw those seated in thrones with the authority to judge. Those were the saints who had been beheaded because of faith and had not worshiped the beast or received his marked. Their souls came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. This is the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them for they will be priest of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.
SATAN’S DOOM (vs. 7-10)
Satan will be released after a thousands years from his prison. He will go out to deceive all nations – Gog and Magog – to gather them for battle. Their members are like the sand of the seashore and they will surround the camp of God’s people. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them. The devil will be thrown into the lake of the burning sulphur to be tormented day and night together with the beast and false prophets.
THE DEAD ARE JUDGED (vs. 11-15)
John saw a great white throne with a man seated on it. The deads stood before the throne and the books were opened. Another book called the book of life was opened. The dead were judge according to what they had done as recorded in the books. All the dead in sea, and deaths in Hades were judged according to what they have done. The death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If another one’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
THOUGHTS:
“Thousand year” was mentioned six times in this chapter which means millenium in Latin.
THREE STAGES IN THE MILLENNIUM: (By Warren Wiersbe)
- Before the Millennium (vs. 1-5) – The Battle of Armageddon is over. The beast and false prophets were cast into hell while Satan was cast into the bottomless pit. After Satan is cast down, there is a resurrection of the Tribulation saints. All saved people have also been raised to reign with Christ. They will not experience the second death.
- During the Millennium (v. 6) – Christ will rule with a rod of iron permitting no impurity or sin. Jerusalem will be center of the Kingdom. The disciples and the saints will reign with Christ as kings and priest. There will be peace and joy will fill the earth. At the close of millenium, many people will obey God outwardly but will not submit to Him from the heart. At the end of the thousand year, Satan will muster a huge army to rebel against Christ.
- After the Millennium (vs. 7-15) – There will be a final battle (God and Magog) as the leading force to attack millennial Jerusalem. But fire from heaven will devour them.
There will be a final judgment with Jesus Christ as Judge on the throne. There is a resurrection. Sea gives up the bodies of the dead. Hades gives up the soul. All sinners will not be able to escape. Three books were involved in the final judgment. : Bible, the Book of Life and the Book containing the deeds people have done. The Book of Life contains the names of the saints. If a person’s name is not found in the Book of Life, he or she is cast into hell. Hell will have degrees of punishment in the same way that heavens has degrees of reward. After Satan and sinners have been judged and rebellion has been pulled down, God can usher in the new heaven and earth -eternal bliss for the people of God!
The “ONE THOUSAND YEARS” are referred to as “Millennium”. There are three major positions among Christian scholars:
- POST MILLENNIALISM – a literal 1,000 years period of peace on earth ushered in by the church. At the end of the 1,000 years, Satan will be unleashed, but Christ will return to defeat him and reign forever. Christ second coming will not occur until after the 1,000 year period.
- PRE MILLENNIALISM – views the 1,000 years as literal time period but holds that Christ second coming initiates his 1,000 years reign and that this reign occurs before the final removal of Satan.
- AMILLENNIALISM – understands the 1,000 years period to be symbolic of the time between Christ’s ascension and his return. The millennium is the reign of Christ in the hearts of the believers and in his church. This is called the church age which will end with the second coming of Christ.
These different views should not cause division in the church because all agree what is crucial in Christianity is that Christ will return to defeat Satan and reign forever.
2 BASIC VIEWS ABOUT ‘RESURRECTION’ :
- Some believe that the first resurrection is spiritual (in our hearts at salvation) and that the Millennium is our spiritual reign of Christ between his first and second coming. During this time, we are priest of God because Christ reigns in our hearts. That second resurrection is the bodily resurrection of all people for judgment.
- Others believe that the first resurrection occurs after Satan has been set aside. It is a physical resurrection of believers who reign with Christ on earth for a literal 1,000 years. The second resurrection occurs at the end of this Millennial in order to judge the unbelievers who had died.